Undertaker&#39;s appliance



Jan, 3, 1939. J. F. BENOIT UNDERTAKERS APPLIANCE Fi led May 11, .1938

invenTor. h F BenoiT Josep bym A'Hvs.

Patented Jan. 3, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims.

This invention relates to an undertakers appliance in the nature of an adjustable body support adapted to be placed within the casket for supporting the body, and one of the objects of the invention is to provide a body support which is simple and inexpensive to manufacture and which can be adjusted vertically at different points along its length to provide a body support having a contour to give the body within the casket any desired position.

In order to give an understanding of the invention I have illustrated in the drawing a selected, embodiment thereof which will now be described after which the novel features will be pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a sectional view through a casket shell illustrating my improved body support in use;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view with part broken out illustrating the improved body support;

Figs. 3, 4, 5 and 6 are fragmentary views showing the different positions in a vertical direction into which the body support may be adjusted;

Fig. '7 is a fragmentary sectional view through 95 the body support taken on the line 1-1, Fig. 1.

In the drawing I indicates the casket shell within which is a mattress member 2 on which the corpse 3 is resting.

My improved body support is designed to provide an adjustable support for the mattress 2 and it comprises a mattress-supporting body 4 which is flexible in the direction of its length but is stiffened in a transverse direction. This body 4 may conveniently be made of wire netting or a strip of canvas orany other similar web material and it is secured to and rests on a plurality of transverse bars 5, there being five such bars illustrated in the drawing. The web 4 con- 40 stituting a mattress-supporting body may be secured to these transverse bars in any suitable way, as by means of tacks or screws 6. At the head end of the body support the Web member 4 extends beyond the end transverse bar 5, as 45 shown at l, and this extended portion 1 is secured to a transversely extending reenforcing member 8 by means of tacks, screws or other fastening devices 9, said reenforcing bar serving to reenforce and support the end portion 1 of the web 4.

To provide for the vertical adjustment of the mattress-supporting web 4, I propose to employ a plurality of supports H] at each side of the web 55 4, said supports being constructed so that they can be adjusted to vary the vertical position of the web 4.

A convenient support for this purpose consists of a rectangular block which rests on one edge, and to pro-vide for the vertical adjustment I have {51 pivoted each block In to the end of a cross member 5 and have so located the pivot point of each block that it is at a different distance from each of the four edges of the block. The pivot connection may conveniently be in the form of a trunnion member ll having a screw-threaded shank 12 to screw into the end of .the transverse bar 5, said trunnion member being provided with a wrench-receiving head [3 and being formed with a plain unthreaded portion adjacent said 15 head which extends through an aperture in the block ID.

The trunnion-receiving aperture of each block is so positioned that it is at a different distance from each of the four edges of the block. For instance, such trunnion-receiving aperture is nearest to the edge M of the block, the distance between said aperture and the edge 15 being greater than between the aperture and the edge 14, and the distance between the aperture and the edge l6 being greater than that between the aperture and the edge l5 but less than that between the aperture and the edge ll.

When the body rest is in use it is placed in the bottom of the casket l and is supported by the rests or supports 10. Since these blocks or supports 10 are pivotally connected to the cross bars 5, each block can be readily turned to bring anyone of its edges into contact with the bottom of the casket, and further since all these blocks are independent from each other each block can be turned into any position independently of any other block.

In Fig. 2 the blocks [0 are all shown as positioned so that the body rest will be supported on the edges M of the blocks and in this Position the body rest is at its lowest adjusted position, as indicated in Fig. 3. If it is desired to raise the entire or any portion of the body support slightly, then the appropriate blocks l8 may be turned so that they will rest on the edges l5, as shown in Fig. '4. If it is desirable to raise any portion of the body support still further, then the appropriate blocks may be turned into the position shown in Fig. 5 so that they rest on the edges l6, and if the maximum vertical adjustment is desired then the blocks will be turned so as to rest on the edges II, as shown in Fig. 6.

In order to give the body the desired appearance when in the casket, it is sometimes necessary to raise the entire body and sometimes necessary to raise only a portion of the body, such as the head and shoulders, etc.

With my improvements this adjustment of the body support to give the body the desired appearance may be made while the body is in the casket. When the body support is first placed in the casket the blocks may all be adjusted into the position shown in Fig. 2 which will give the mattress 2 its lowest position. After the body 3 has been placed in the casket then any portion of the mattress support may be raised by simply reaching into the casket at the sides of the body and turning the appropriate blocks l0 into the desired position, and this may be accomplished without in any way disturbing the body 3.

In Fig. 1 the blocks [0 at the head end of the mattress support are shown as adjusted to rest on the edges l1, thereby giving the head end of the support its maximum elevation. The second blocks ID are adjusted so that they are resting on the edges 15 which willhold the portion of the mattress support underneath the shoulders of the body 3 in an intermediate position. The other. three blocks are shown as adjustedto rest on the edges I4.

My improved body support can be inexpensively manufacturedand can be readily made of any length. It is a self-contained unit adapted to be placed in any casket and its use involves. no special construction. of casket.

I claim:

1. A body support for undertakers' use comprising a body portion in the form of a web of flexible material adapted to be placed in a casket, bars extending transversely of the web and to which the latter is secured, and means for supporting each bar at a plurality of different elevations independently of any other bar.

2. A body support for undertakers use comprising a body portion in the form of a web adapted to be placedin a casket, bars. extending transversely of the web and towhich the latter is secured, and means at the end of each transverse bar for supporting the latter at a plurality of different elevations.

3..A body support for undertakers use comprising a body portion in the form of a web adapted to be placed in a casket, bars extending transverselyof;the-web and to which the latter is secured, and a rectangular block pivotally secured to the end of each bar with the pivot point of each block at a difierent distance frormeach of the four sides thereof whereby by turning the blocks into diiferent positions the body portion may be adjusted to different vertical elevations.

4. A body support for undertakers? use com.- prising a body portion inthe form of awebadapted to be placedin a casket, and a plurality. of rectangular supportingblocks .pivotallysecured to the body portion at each sidethereof. with. the

pivot point of each block at adifierentdistance from each of the four edges thereof.

J OSEPH F. .BENOIT. 

